Here's the sequel, as promised!

Enjoy~

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The day Goku came back to life was a day Tien cursed.

Things became unbelievably complicated once the halo had disappeared off his head and he stood before them; alive and in the flesh once more. Even though he had been able to speak with Chi-Chi before the saiyan had come to visit, they had not been prepared for the man to come back. And, even though Tien loved his friend dearly, he kind of hated him at the moment.

"Dad? What's wrong?"

The triclops smiled down at the child with the mane of wild hair so reminiscent of his father's that it was impossibly to deny his true heritage. Then he knelt down in front of him and brought him into his arms, hugging him tightly.

Goten was his child.

But he wasn't.

"Nothing at all, Goten."

His left hand was holding onto the back of the boy's head, all the while his right arm had wrapped around his back. Goten was a small child, yet unbelievably strong. Holding him here, though, Tien couldn't feel that strength. He felt like the newborn he had carried in the very hospital room Chi-Chi had given birth in; small, fragile... like someone he needed to protect.

Goku was speaking with Chi-Chi and Gohan at the moment, so he was allowed a quiet moment to revel in his son's presence before he was undoubtedly ripped away from the life he had managed to build.

He had never meant to get so attached to the Son family. He had known that the chances of losing them had been high; he wasn't a fool. The fact was that there was always some big threat- having Goku around or not wouldn't change anything. The world was constantly in peril and they would eventually need him to come back for good. Majin Buu was just another bad guy that had threatened the world- there would be another one some day. There would always be another bad guy looking to destroy the world.

Tien had thought he was prepared for the day Goku came back.

Now he noticed that he had never been prepared for such a thing.

"You look sad."

Goten may have been Goku's son, but he took after Chi-Chi in perception. He was able to point out little things that he found interesting or odd, which was a skill that Goku had needed to develop over time because of his unfortunate hardheadedness.

"I'm a little sad." He admitted, "But you don't have to worry about it. Sometimes, Goten, adults get sad. But that doesn't mean you should worry, alright?"

"I don't want you to be sad." He heard Goten whisper softly, effectively managing to shatter whatever had been left of his weeping heart.

Tien pressed a soft kiss to the boy's forehead before he stood up. He smiled down at the child as reassuringly as he could muster, even though he wanted nothing more than to curse Goku for ripping away the life he had built by simply returning. And he grabbed Goten's hand, motioning for him to follow so they could meet up with the rest of the members of the Son family.

The boy looked back up at him dumbfounded, but Tien forced himself to look away from his son.

No.

Not his son.

Goku's son.

He had always known this was bound to happen.

When they reached the small family, Tien handed Goten off to his mother. He smiled at them all as earnestly as he could- even though he knew his smile was more of a grimace than anything genuine- and excused himself. He knew that they would undoubtedly need some time to going back to being a family.

He made a point to not look at Chi-Chi as he spoke. And he forced himself to try everything possible to not look at her. He knew that if he looked at the woman, he wouldn't be able to control himself. If he did such a thing, he would likely cause a scene. And he didn't want to do that. He didn't want to embarrass himself and he certainly did not want to put the family through such a dishonorable thing.

He bowed politely and turned around before he could lose what little was left of his resolve and left.

Not even halfway back to the farm he had left Chiatzou in charge of, Tien burst out into tears at the loss of the family he had worked so hard to build with Chi-Chi.

Yamcha and Trunks came to visit him about two weeks after Goku came back to the land of the living. He had a sneaking feeling that Goten had wanted to tag along with them- where Trunks went, Goten was usually not far behind- but he didn't ask why he had not come along. The very thought of his son managed to bring tears to his eyes, so he made a point of not thinking of him whenever others were around.

"Hey, Mr. Tien! Are you finally going to show me that machine gun punch?" The energetic boy called out as he landed a couple of feet away from the sturdy house Tien lived in. "You promised me you would one day!"

Yamcha sighed beside him and scratched the back of his head, "One day isn't today, Trunks. You're here for your punishment. Remember?"

"But I didn't do anything!"

"Your mother said you forgot to clean your room, even when she threatened you. So, no, you didn't do anything. And that's the problem."

Yamcha was such a goofball, Tien had found it difficult to believe he would ever be able to raise a child right. And, in essence, he still hadn't. But Yamcha was more than just Bulma's friend to Trunks and he had a big part in raising the kid. It wasn't unusual to see him enforcing some kind of punishment or rule either of his parents had established. But it was odd to think the usually laid back man could be even marginally strict with Trunks- especially considering how tightly the boy had him wrapped around his fingers.

Chiatzou walked out of the house they both now lived in with a large, empty basket, greeting both of the newcomers as they walked up to their small balcony. Tien merely took amusement from the way Trunks tried to weasel his way out of the punishment his parents had decided to dish out.

It also wasn't out of the ordinary for Bulma to send Trunks up to the farm to help with the harvest as a punishment. He was a mostly good kid, but he had his spurts of impulsiveness that got him in trouble. Especially now that he was in his 'Vegeta stage' and was proving to be a handful by copying most of his father's bad habits.

The only thing that gave Tien hope that Trunks would not grow up to be another Vegeta was the simple fact that he treated Yamcha the same way he had years ago. Even though he scoffed and hissed at everyone else, he still listened to Yamcha as if he were some big sage that knew all of the answers in the universe. And, while it was quite the funny thought, as long as Trunks thought such a thing, he at least had one person he would never disrespect.

While Chiatzou and Trunks got to work on pulling the harvest, Tien and Yamcha busied themselves by preparing the secondary plot of land for the new seeds. Tien liked to give his land some time to rest, so he tried to switch plots every year, just to give the soil a chance to replenish its nutrients.

The work was easy but time consuming. By the time everything had been finished, Trunks was fast asleep on Chiatzou's bed after having eaten a large dinner and he and Yamcha were enjoying small conversation. His best friend was cleaning up the plates from their dinner, giving his own bits of opinions whenever he deemed it necessary.

Tien was lulled into such a calm and peaceful state that he was truly surprised by Yamcha's question.

"They miss you, you know?"

Anger began to bubble up within him, even though he tried his best to suppress the emotion. Getting angry wouldn't do anything for him now. He had already made his choice; he may regret it, but there was no way he could change it.

"Goten asked to come with us today. Chi-Chi was able to talk him out of it by threatening with having him join Trunks in his punishment." Yamcha breathed out as he swirled his cup of water in his hands before he looked up and directly into Tien's eyes. "Goku tells me not one night has passed when he hasn't asked where his dad is."

Tien hated his friend at the moment. He knew what he was trying to do and he hated it.

"Goku is there." He answered through clenched teeth, looking away from Yamcha.

He didn't expect him to understand. But what he had done was for the best. Goten couldn't continue running around thinking that he was his father. Goku was there now. He was ready to take up his rightful place in the Son household. And in that household, there was no space for a triclops that had no true connection to the family... Aside from... No.

No.

"But his dad isn't."

Tien frowned heavily at his friend's grave tone.

He didn't have to put up with this. Yamcha may have some idea what it was like to raise a child from birth; but he didn't. Not to the extent Tien knew. He also didn't know what it was like to fall in love with the most wonderful woman in the world, even though she was married to one of your greatest friends. He had no idea what it was like to make a real life with someone; just to have a dead old friend come back to life to rip it away from his hands.

"His dad is there." Tien remarked forcefully, emphasizing the finality of his tone by standing up and moving to the kitchen to help Chiatzou finish up.

They didn't speak again. Yamcha left the farm with a slumbering Trunks in his arms after having only said goodbye to Chiatzou. His friend was too angered with him to actually try and speak to him and Tien did not mind at all.

Who did he think he was coming into his home to challenge and question his decisions like he had? It wasn't as if he was doing this to spite anyone! He was keeping his distance from the Son family to protect himself. He knew he wouldn't be able to hold it together if he tried to talk to them now.

The next person to come question him about his decision was Gohan himself.

Tien didn't hold anything back from him. He may have been young, but Gohan was wise. He understood much more than others might so Tien knew that if he told him the truth, he'd understand his side of the story.

"I can't go back. Your parents need to be together. Goten deserves to have his actual family. And I can't put myself through the agony that will be having to see your mother in the arms of another man while Goten calls another man his father."

Gohan pursed his lips as Tien did his best to keep from allowing the tears in his eyes to fall.

"You love my mom."

"You've known that for a while."

Gohan had been the one to convince him to ask her out.

"You love my brother."

"He's been nothing but my son since the day I first laid eyes on him."

Gohan had been there in the hospital room when Tien had first laid eyes on the boy. He had been the one to recommend his name, but Tien had been the one to confirm that it was a great name. He'd never seen Gohan smile as brightly as he had that day; apparently pleased to have had Tien's consensus on the matter.

"You respect my father."

"Enough to not impose on what is his life."

Tien didn't try to fool himself into thinking that Goku was a bad man. If anything, Goku had too big a heart. He may have been a soft hearted fool, but that was one of his greatest strengths. It could double as his weakness, but that kindness had barely backfired on him in his life.

Gohan frowned at him, "My mom and brother miss you. My dad's lost- he barely knows us anymore... Don't you think you could come back for just a little bit? Just to help get everyone situated?"

Tien smiled sadly at him, "If I go back, Gohan, I don't think I'd be able to stand losing them again. It hurts to know that I'm hurting you... But I can't put myself through that torture."

He was being selfish, he knew. But he at least deserved this, now that Goku would be taking the place he had previously occupied in the Son household.

He was only thinking of himself. It was wrong to be selfish. First he had wanted the Son family to be his own. Now he wanted to stay far away... He was being illogical and rude. But he couldn't stop himself- he couldn't put himself through such pain.

"I understand." Gohan sighed softly, stood up, and walked around the dining room table so he was right beside Tien. "Just know that we all really do love you... If you're able to put yourself through that torture, we'd really appreciate it."

He hugged the man now and Tien instinctively hugged the boy he considered to be another son.

The third and final person to come to his temporary home to try and convince him to go back to the Son family was someone Tien would never have considered having cared about any of them before.

Vegeta stomped into his home without knocking. He just barged inside with an annoyed scowl on his face and a displeased glimmer in his eyes. Tien had been enjoying a quiet breakfast with Chiatzou until that point and they had both been surprised by the sudden entrance.

"You! Triclops!"

Tien stared at him in complete confusion for a few seconds before he set down his morning tea on his table. "Yes, Vegeta?"

"It's time to get your head out of your ass and go back to that idiot's family!"

Tien glanced over at Chiatzou to make sure that he wasn't the only one seeing Vegeta in their house. His best friend looked over at him for a second with an equally puzzled look on his face, then turned and asked the saiyan, "Would you like anything?"

"For the fool to go back to the idiot before my mate makes my ears bleed with his constant chattering!"

Tien didn't miss the male pronoun utilized to speak about Vegeta's mate. And he was left even further confused by this... Wasn't Bulma the one that was supposed to be considered Vegeta's mate, seeing how she was his wife and all?

"That insolent child will not shut up about missing his pitiful father, even though that idiot Kakarot is already with him! And because he never shuts up about it, my brat doesn't shut up about it!" Vegeta growled as he crossed the rest of the distance between them until he was standing almost a foot away, sneering down at the seated Tien. "My mates are insufferable and cannot leave good enough alone- return to the idiot before I have to do something drastic!"

Now it was mates... the hell?

Vegeta left in a huff at that point, apparently pleased with the threats he had managed to leave Tien with.

Everything was uncomfortably silent after the enraged saiyan had left. Tien could only stare at the spot where he had once stood; completely flabbergasted and somewhat overwhelmed by his angered verbal onslaught.

Chiatzou was the first one to speak up after he had cleared his throat.

"Maybe... Maybe it's time to visit them, Tien."

His best friend had kept mostly quiet about his opinions about the whole situation. He had an intimate understanding of what Tien felt because of their connection. Tien knew that he didn't agree with what he had done because of that connection too. But he was kind enough to allow him time to be alone, rather than try and push him to going back.

The triclops breathed out heavily and hung his head.

Maybe it was time.

..~..~..

And here is the sequel to Trunks the Matchmaker. It's a bit more angsty because it's Tien and everybody in here but Vegeta is an idiot (not really, but, you know, he's always right in his mind).

Hope you all liked it! It'll be a short piece like the first story, no more than three chapters.

Please review!